WICHITA, Kan. – Playing without American Athletic Conference Preseason Player of the Year and three time all-conference selection Angeles Alderete for the majority of Friday’s league tournament quarterfinal, East Carolina pushed Florida Atlantic to five sets but fell just short as the Owls advanced to the semifinal round by scores of 25-22, 25-27, 21-25, 25-12 and 16-14 inside Wichita State University’s Koch Arena.
Ellie Pate led three ECU (18-9) players in double figures offensively with 16 kills while Izzy Marinelli and Fran McBride posted 13 apiece. Valeria Rosado notched a career-high 26 for FAU (17-12).
The Pirates committed a season-high 30 attacking errors to hit just .188 for the contest. The Owls finished with .232 efficiency with 62 kills and 21 errors. The teams were pretty much dead even in the defensive categories as Florida Atlantic grabbed a slight 71-70 advantage in digs while East Carolina won the total blocks battle 10.0 to 9.0.
With the first set knotted at 21, a Rosado kill sparked a 4-1 run that gave her side the early upper hand. ECU rallied back to win the second frame in extra points before registering a four-point victory in the third. However, the Owls ran away with the fourth and erased a late 13-12 deficit in the deciding stanza to move on in the tourney.
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